Manchester United is preparing an application to sign Napoli defender Kim Min Jae.
According to Sport Witness, United is “warming up its engines”, continuing to pursue the South Korean football player.
Min Jae has been in great shape since his move to Naples in the summer, when Napoli climbed to the top of Serie A with the third best defensive result in the league.
The central midfielder further enhanced his reputation with an impressive performance at the World Cup, during which South Korea reached the playoffs.
His performances attracted the attention of the best clubs in Europe, and United boss Eric ten Hag is said to have been a big fan of his.
Although Ten Hag has a favorite pair of central defenders in the person of Lisandro Martinez and Rafael Varane, Min Jae will provide excellent depth.
Given Varane’s fitness problems combined with the number of games United are likely to be involved in, the 26-year-old has a huge role to play at Old Trafford.
It is reported that there is a 50 million euro buyout clause in Min Jae’s contract, which can only be activated by clubs outside Italy.
Napoli desperately wants the South Korean to sign a new deal in Naples to withdraw or increase the point, while his market value is only growing every day.
Any move from United will almost certainly happen in the summer, when there will be a shortage of funds in the January window.
The focus remains on bringing in a striker to replace Cristiano Ronaldo, which seems to be the only task next month.
This, combined with the encouraging sale of the club by the Glazer family at the beginning of next year, leads to the fact that the club does not have enough funds and does not want to sanction a high fee for any player in January.
If United do make the move in the summer, they are likely to face stiff competition as Real Madrid will join a host of Premier League and Serie A teams as potential suitors if Min Jae decides to leave Italy.
